Effectively Sharing Covid-19 Giving Opportunities Online
Altruism is human, and people are moved to want to give and make a difference in times of crisis. Our responsibility is to make it easy for people to give in a way that is meaningful to them while best meeting the mission of the health care organization. Here is a checklist to ensure your COVID-19 online giving opportunities are best positioned to meet the needs of your health care organization and are aligned with community interest.
1. Embed the giving options on your organization’s main COVID-19 update page.
The information should also be accessible from the main giving page. The community should not be expected to navigate between multiple website pages to access ways to make a difference in response to COVID-19. Make it easy for individuals to find how to make a difference.
2. Consolidate all giving opportunities your organization is seeking.
Such as:
a. Financial support
Communicate financial resources are a top priority to allow the organization to be nimble and meet the changing needs of clinicians, patients and community.
Specify how fund(s) will be used. Is the focus on specific needs or the greatest need at any given time?
Acknowledge to donors there may be a delay in gift and receipt processing that are mailed. For example: Thank you for supporting our efforts to care for staff, patients and the community. Please be aware there may be a delay in processing your gift and providing your receipt as the staff adheres to the mandatory health precautions. Please contact _______ with any questions. Thank you for your patience and your generosity.
b. In-kind donations
1. Clarify organizational needs, such as clinical masks.
2. Include limitations and items you are not accepting and why. For example:
We cannot accept any other supplies at this time due to infection control/ storage/logistics.
For the safety of our health care providers, food can only be accepted if individually packaged or from commercially licensed restaurants.
3. Provide instructions on where to deliver in-kind donations. Include information if donations cannot be taken directly to a hospital unit, etc.
4. Provide a link to your in-kind donation form that individuals can download, complete and drop off with their donations. This provides a chance to capture donor contact information and the estimated value of the gift. Providing it online will help expedite the drop off logistics for those who need or want this documentation.
c. Share written thank you messages and videos of encouragement.
These can be captured by the foundation and shared with the health care staff. Powerful gratitude messages can be regularly shared through internal email updates by leadership, on social media, etc.
d. Invite volunteer support for medical and non-medical assistance
e.Link to other community partners such as blood drive locations
3. Update giving options based on changes in organizational needs.
Needs will change, so can giving opportunities.
4. Align with your procurement office to provide additional information.
Vendors, restaurants and corporations often want to support the organization but don’t know how. Be creative and proactive.
5. Provide direct contact information
.
You don’t want to miss a giving opportunity due to unanswered questions.
6. Provide regular stewardship and communication.
Promote the impact recent gifts are making on the organization, especially to the people on the frontlines (physicians, clinicians, staff, patients and family members).
a. Promote pictures, stories and videos of the community showing gratitude to your organization.
b. Share the heroic stories of your care team with the community.
7. Promote the COVID-19 update web page.
Feature organizational updates and giving opportunities on email taglines, social media and more.
